Archive for 2018
Speak Up Storytelling: Kathy Binder
On episode #27 of the Speak Up Storytelling podcast, Matthew and Elysha Dicks talk storytelling alongside storyteller Kathy Binder. In our followup segment, we talk about upcoming Speak Up events, respond to listener comments, and offer another shout-out to our fans down under. Next, we talk about finding and collecting stories in your everyday life using…
Read MoreBe happy for others, damn it.
Years ago, before the kids were born, Elysha and I went to the movies. We’ve gone to the movies since the kids were born, of course, despite warnings from those rotten people who like to make parenting sound like guerrilla warfare that we never would. In fact, in the two years after our first child,…
Read MoreResolution update: November 2018
PERSONAL HEALTH 1. Don’t die. My left ear has been filled with fluid since a plane flight two weeks ago. My doc says it should clear in another week of so, and it’s not life threatening. 2. Lose 20 pounds. I gained another pound in November, so now I’m 10 pounds down and 10 pounds…
Read MoreChanging minds. Occasionally.
I make a lot of arguments in writing, both on my blog, via social media, in the magazine columns I write, and in the occasional newspaper pieces that I publish. I say a lot. And I admittedly have a lot to say. My intention is always to express myself. Make my positions clear. Argue forcefully…
Read MoreSpy magazine’s prank from 30 years ago is more remarkable now than it was then.
The following is a true thing. Also, it seems absolutely impossible. Impossible to me and perhaps to you. When I first read about it, I assumed it was false. A hoax. But no. It’s true. I checked and rechecked. This really happened. Here goes: 30 years ago, Spy magazine sent “refund” checks for $1.11 to…
Read MoreDr. Seuss’s The Grinch is feminist and lovely.
Elysha and I took Charlie to see Dr. Seuss’s The Grinch last weekend. It’s a great film, not unlike the cartoon that we grew up watching on television. And I’ve always thought it was a pretty brilliant story: Christmas is stolen from the Whos, but still they gather and sing on Christmas day, just as…
Read MoreDon’t sleep on Die Hard 2
Here’s the thing that everyone misses about Die Hard absolutely being a Christmas movie: So is Die Hard 2. Maybe even more so.
Read MoreSpeak Up Storytelling: Linda Storms
On episode #26 of the Speak Up Storytelling podcast, Matthew and Elysha Dicks talk storytelling! In our followup segment, we talk about upcoming Speak Up events, respond to listener comments, and offer a shout-out to our fans down under. Next, we talk about finding and collecting stories in your everyday life using “Homework for Life.” We…
Read MoreThe life cycle of a human being through the eyes of a six year-old boy
Behold! Charlie’s (age 6) interpretation of the life cycle of a human being from the womb to the grave. The beginning stages and the ending stages are especially interesting.
Read MoreTrump’s Thanksgiving Day hissy-fit
The Washington Post’s Josh Dawsey summarized Trump’s Thanksgiving Day antics so well that I thought I’d share my favorite couple of paragraphs from the piece. If Trump ever manages to construct a Presidential library when he is finally out of office (unlikely given his inability to construct his stupid wall), I feel like the words…
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